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Free Socialist Republic of Germany
The Free Socialist Republic of Germany (German: Freie Sozialistische Republik Deutschland,'' ''FSRD), commonly known simply as Socialist Germany or Germany, is a socialist country in Central and Western Europe. Politically, it is bordered by Denmark to the north, Poland, the Soviet Union and Lithuania to the east, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland and Baden-Württemberg to the south and the Netherlands and Rhenish Republic to the west. Geographically it borders the Baltic Sea and North Sea to the north and the Rhine River in the west. The FSRD was declared on 1 May 1919, the start of the May Revolution. Left-wing revolutionaries termed "Spartacists" violently seized Berlin and other cities amidst a mass strike, triggering the German Civil War. After a year and a half of fighting, the Spartacists emerged victorious and signed the Treaty of Aachen, resulting in the breakaway of two non-socialist states: the Rhenish Republic and Baden-Württemberg. With an estimated population of 58,979,200 as of 1932, it is the second most populated country in Europe, substantially behind the Soviet Union but ahead of other major countries like France, the United Kingdom and Italy. Its most populated city is Berlin, which is also the capital. Other major cities include the trade hubs of Frankfurt and Hanover, the Bavarian urban centres of Munich and Nuremburg, the great Rhenish economic powerhouses of Düsseldorf, Dortmund and Essen, the Saxon industrial centres of Leipzig, Dresden and Karl-Marx-Stadt (Chemnitz), the coastal trade cities of Hamburg, Bremen and Friedenshafen (Kiel), and the eastern urban centres of Engelsstadt (Königsberg), Posen and Breslau. Recent History Unification of Germany The Great War German Revolution Aftermath of the Civil War Politics Germany functions as a federal socialist republic organized under the principles of soviet or council democracy, known in German as the Rätesystem ''(council system). This system begins at the lowest level, starting with ''Gemeinden ''(municipalities), whose adult population elects a ''Gemeinderat (municipal council). Some places, typically large cities and towns, are divided into Gemeindebezirke ''(municipal districts), which function electorally the same as ''Gemeinden but have the intended purpose of containing populations more comparable to the rural Gemeinden. The Gemeindebezirke function jointly to govern their city or town, but function separately when it comes to council elections. These elections are held directly through secret ballots with universal suffrage for citizens 18 years and older (16 and 17 year old workers may still vote for their workplace council), and are heavily influenced by the local workers', peasants' and soldiers' councils, which are also closely involved with their local Gemeinderat post-election. Larger regional and national agglomerations of these workers councils also influence decision making at the higher levels, and most members of all levels of the councils are a member of these workers councils. The Gemeinderäte in turn elect a Kreisrat (county council) for their respective Kreis (county). The size of each Gemeinden varies, but there are usually thousands of delegates that participate in the election of a Kreisrat. The Kreisräte in turn elect a Bezirksrat ''(district council) for their respective ''Bezirk (district).'' This is one of the largest processes, where often tens of thousands of delegates in total from each Kreisrat participate. The ''Bezirksräte in turn elect a Länderrat ''(state council) for their respective ''Land (state), as well as delegates to the Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils, and to the Congress of Bavarian Workers', Soldiers' and Peasants' Councils in the case of Bavaria. The Länderräte ''then elects delegates to the Congress of State Councils. All four types of administrative division-based councils additionally function as local governments with varying powers as part of the federal system. Finally, the Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils elects a varied amount of members of the Congress of Ministers, while both jointly exercise control over the legislative power. 10 members are elected by the Congress of State Councils. The electoral process lasts a total of 7 days, always beginning on a Sunday and ending the following Saturday. The first two days are spent on elections to the ''Gemeinderäte, with the first day being spent on the election itself and the second on certifying results.'' On the third day, the ''Gemeinderäte elects the Kreisräte (county councils). On the fourth day, the Kreisräte elects the Bezirksräte (district councils). On the fifth day the Bezirksräte elects the'' Länderräte'' (state councils), and on the sixth day they also elect delegates to the Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils, with each Bezirk electing 25 delegates. Additionally on the sixth day the Länderräte ''elects the Congress of State Councils, with 5 delegates being elected for each state. On the seventh and final day, the Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils and the Congress of State Councils elects the Congress of Ministers. All representatives within this system at all levels can be removed through a recall vote from either the councils that elected them or the population that elected them in the case of the ''Gemeinderäte. Movements for recall votes are generally organized by the workers' councils. In other words, deputies operate under an imperative mandate where they are bound by the will of those who elected them. As a result, the composition of the councils can change before national elections are held every three years. However, recall elections cannot be held within two months of a national legislative election, both before and after. Additionally, if a recalled deputy manages to maintain their seat in a recall vote, they are protected from another recall election for three months. In the case of councils recalling council deputies above them, at least 1/4th of the total members of the lower councils must cosign a statement of opposition. For example, if the Gemeinderäte ''within their respective ''Kreis wished to recall a member of their Kreisrat, 1/4th of the deputies of all the Gemeinderäte ''within said ''Kreis must cosign a statement of opposition in order to trigger a recall election. If this requirement is met, the opposition must choose a candidate to oppose the recalled deputy in an election, and if the opposition candidate defeats the recalled deputy they replace said deputy. This same process applies to every council that has another council above itself. In the case of a recall election to the Gemeinderäte, which is the only level elected through a popular ballot rather than councils, the local workers' councils within a Gemeinden must organize a petition with at least 1,000 individual signatures. If this requirement is met, similarly to the administrative councils the opposition must present a candidate. That candidate then faces off against the recalled deputy through a popular ballot, and replaces said deputy if they win. Legally, there is no head of state or head of government, with both positions being filled by a collective head of state known as the People's Council which leads the Congress of Ministers. Functionally, however, the Chairperson of the council functions as head of state, while the Deputy Chairperson functions as head of government. Other members of the council play an influential advisory role, and also have voting powers in the congress. The current Chairperson is revolutionary leader Rosa Luxemburg, while the current Deputy Chairperson is socialist politician Karl Liebknecht, son of Wilhelm Liebknecht, one of the primary founders of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). There are three main legal political organizations: the communist Communist Party of Germany (KPD), the socialist United Social Democratic Party of Germany (VSPD), and the anarchist Free Worker's Union of Germany (FAUD). Some smaller non-left wing organizations are permitted, and their members often run as independent candidates in council elections. It is, however, not necessary to be a part of an organization in order to run for council elections. Major opposition parties are banned, ostensibly because they operate in and support the hostile capitalist countries of Baden-Württemberg and the Rhenish Republic. Administrative divisions Main article: Administrative divisions of Germany Germany is nominally composed of 29 federalized states, or Länder, including the five states of the autonomous Bavarian Soviet Republic. In practice, four of these states are entirely controlled by other countries, while seven include disputed territory. Each of these states has their own government, known in German as a Länderrat ''(state council), which is elected through the council system. These state governments have various administrative powers over their respective boundaries which are enshrined in the constitution. The federal government does not have the authority to abolish any state, and it is the responsibility of the state governments to alter their internal administrative divisions within the bounds of the constitution. States can be established and dismantled and new boundaries can be formed only with the majority approval of the relevant state governments. The federal government does, however, hold the reserve power to suspend state governments in specific situations. The federal government also has responsibility over military, diplomatic and national economic matters. State governments do not participate in the election of the federal lower house, the Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils, which is instead done by the ''Bezirksräte, which additionally elect the state governments. State governments do elect a separate congress, however, known as the Congress of State Councils. Foreign relations Within the Comintern Outside of the Comintern Military Main article: Volksarmee The German military is called the Volksarmee, which means People's Army. It is a volunteer force composed of nearly 600,000 active personnel and about 120,000 reserve personnel. It is divided into four branches: the Landstreitkräfte (Land Forces), the Volksmarine (People's Navy), the Luftstreitkräfte (Air Forces) and the Rote Garde (Red Guard). Official German historiography places the date of its formation on 1 May 1919, the day the May Revolution began. However, its current structure and its name were only created in August 1923. Human rights Human rights in Germany are defined in the constitution. # Right to "fair work". This covers the restriction of work weeks to 30 hours, or 6 hours per day, as well as the right to employment, the equality of men and women in the workplace, the freedom to pursue a desired career, the right to work-free holidays, and the prohibition of child labour. # Right to "wellbeing". This covers the right to healthcare, education, senior care, child care, housing, and free time. It also guarantees the right to emigrate within the bounds of the law and prohibits extradition of citizens. # Right to "faith". This covers the freedom to adhere to and express religious beliefs, the freedom to abstain from religion, the right to belong to religious institutions, and the separation of church and state. # Right to "participation". This covers the right to participate in the council system, including voting, standing for elections, and recalling representatives for those 18 years old or above. # Right to "organization". This covers the independence of the trade unions and workers' councils from the state, the right to petition, and the right to protest and strike. It also guarantees the right to organize a political organization as long as it is "committed to democracy". # Right to "expression". This covers freedom of speech and conscience, including the right to express opposition to the state, the guarantee of independence for the press and the arts, and the right to privacy. # Right to "social ownership". This covers the abolition of private property, the personal property rights of the individual and the right to collective ownership of the means of production. Total socialization of the economy is explicitly stated as the end goal. # Right to "justice". This covers the right of citizens to have a fair trial, the political independence of the judiciary, the prohibition of the death penalty, and the rehabilitative nature of confinement. # Right to "protection". This covers the function of the working class as a collective armed militia for the protection of the proletariat. Citizens are legally entitled to own a firearm and to receive firearms training. Law After the conclusion of the German Civil War, the new socialist German government set out to completely restructure the legal system. Traditional civil law established in the German Empire and its predecessors was abolished and replaced by a new "proletarian" law system. The judiciary was no longer meant to represent a separate caste from the general population. As such, the judiciary is formed out of the local councils elected through the Rätesystem. Additionally, there is a federal-level supreme court formed by the Congress of Workers' and Soldiers' Councils. The judiciary has multiple purposes, ranging from prosecuting and rehabilitating common criminals to executing seizures of bourgeois property. Officially, the only purpose of the judiciary is to advance the cause of socialism. The rights of citizens with regard to the judiciary and the rights of the judiciary itself are defined in the constitution. The legal system is organized by the Ministry of Justice. Law enforcement is executed through the Revolutionary Workers' Militia (RAM), a regionalized and decentralized organization formed in 1921. The RAM does not serve the same functions or purpose as traditional police forces. Rather it operates under the principles of self-protection for local communities, with all members being part of the working class which it is wholly accountable to. The Ministry of Security, in cooperation with local governments, is responsible for organizing the functions of the RAM. Economy Germany has a socialist planned economy based around Marxian economics. Private property, also known as private ownership of the means of production, was legally abolished immediately after the civil war. Officially, the working class is to exercise control over the means of production, or their workplaces, and in some cases elect their own management. All sectors of the economy were nationalized, although some sectors, primarily agriculture, continue to undergo a process of socialization. Workdays over 6 hours were officially outlawed under the 1921 constitution, and some jobs have even shorter hours. There have been significant steps made towards the abolition of currency and the transition towards labour vouchers, a step considered integral towards building lower-stage communism (a term used interchangeably with socialism) by the KPD. These efforts, however, have been complicated by the ongoing recovery from the destruction of the civil war. Even so, Germany has one of the strongest economies in Europe, and is widely considered both a great power in Europe and a world power. Since 1923, the overall economy has consistently grown, with growth being seen in most sectors of the economy. Germany has one of Europe's largest industrial sectors, which produces large amounts of machinery, electronics and vehicles. Despite a trade embargo from much of the capitalist west, Germany continues to have strong trade ties with the member states of the Comintern, especially with the Soviet Union, as well as other non-Comintern allies such as Sweden. Germany has helped to invest in the industrialization of the Soviet Union while receiving mostly agricultural exports in return, which was very crucial in the early post-civil war years. Natural resources Demographics Religion Although legally secular in contrast with the German Empire, Christianity is the dominant religion in Germany. As religion is not recorded in the census, figures are largely based on pre-revolutionary information and church membership. Within the currently administered areas of the FSRD, the population is mostly Protestant with a sizeable Catholic minority. The Catholic populations are primarily based in the Eastern Rhineland and Westphalia, as well as Bavaria and Eastern Germany, the latter of which is primarily composed of Poles. The Protestant populations are dominant in Central and Northern Germany, as well as East Prussia. Protestants are primarily divided into Lutherans and Calvinists, with Lutherans as a majority. The largest non-Christian religion is Judaism. A small but growing section of the population is irreligious. Religious policy According to the 1921 constitution, freedom of religion is guaranteed. Germany is thus a secular nation by law, with strict separation of church and state. After the civil war, the influence of church institutions was reduced, and many churches were closed. After various reforms throughout the early 1920's, some churches were allowed to reopen, and the Ministry of Religious Affairs was established to facilitate relations between religious institutions and the state separately from other government institutions. The government has at various points encouraged private worship outside of churches, while atheism is promoted within the KPD. Members of the legislative branches are not allowed to explicitly factor religion into political decision making outside of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Some churches have expressed cooperation with the government, while others have expressed opposition. Some religious leaders have even ran for council elections as independent candidates. Languages German is both the official and primary language in Germany. The German language itself is composed of various regional dialects. Standard German, or Hochdeutsch, is a West Germanic form of German commonly used in writing as well as interregional communication. There are a number of officially recognized minority languages. These include Polish, Sorbian/Wendish, Yiddish, Romani, Danish, Masurian, Kashubian, Czech, Lithuanian, Dutch and Frisian. Polish is the largest minority language, consisting of over 3,000,000 speakers who make up a majority in much of Eastern Germany. Two of the recognized languages, Lithuanian and Danish, are recognized on the basis of territorial claims, with both being practically non-existent within the current de facto boundaries. No government institution currently exists for the regulation of the German language, with such studies being relegated to independent organizations, some of which receive government subsidies. The protection of minority languages and groups is conducted through the Ministry of Minorities. Education Prior to the establishment of the FSRD, Germany had already achieved a near universal basic literacy rate, meaning a person is capable of basic reading and writing. However, levels of education were also largely determined by income and class. While secondary schools such as universities existed, they were difficult to advance to without being among the wealthy. Primary education was also often generally short for most children, with few remaining in education beyond the age of twelve, when they would generally enter the workforce. Advanced levels of literacy were as a result rare. Both as a result of the Great War and the German Civil War, the education system was left in tatters by the time the FSRD was consolidated, and had to be rebuilt anew. These massive changes began implementation almost immediately after the end of the civil war. State-funded kindergartens were established for children six years old and younger to provide universal pre-school education as well as to provide childcare during the day so both parents could work. This was in line with the socialist campaign of anti-traditionalism and gender equality, which encouraged women to abandon traditional home-based roles and seek jobs on an equal level with men. After the kindergartens comes primary school, where attendance is required. Courses last from the age of six (or seven depending on the birthday) to sixteen, spanning ten grades. Grades first through fifth are considered to be lower grades, while grades sixth through tenth are considered to be higher grades. Beyond grade-based differences in curriculum, each group has distinct structural differences, with higher grades designed to prepare students for work and higher levels of education like university. Classes in primary school cover multiple subjects. Primary subjects include German language and literature, art, science, mathematics, history and physical education. It is also required to learn at least one foreign language. Available language courses include Russian, French, Italian, English and Hungarian. For students in the upper grades, it is required to take two additional classes which range in multiple subjects that all tie into preparation for adult life. Each class lasts for half of a school year, which spans 38 weeks, six days per week (with the additional classes not being held on Saturdays). Additionally, athletically inclined students have the opportunity to participate in sporting events known as Youth Spartakiads, which are separate from their international counterpart. These events are funded and sponsored by the state and managed by the Free Socialist Youth, the national youth organization of the FSRD. They are held on both a regional level and a national level. The first Youth Spartakiads were held in 1930. After finishing primary education, students graduate and then may either advance to a higher level vocational school that spans grades eleven and twelfth, from age seventeen to eighteen, or they can choose to pursue a working career immediately. The curriculum of these vocational schools cover many university-level subjects. Those who pass their courses gain a degree in their chosen subject. Upon completing this level of education, students take final exams. Students who pass gain the Abitur, a qualification that approves students to attend university. In university, high level courses are available in engineering, science, arts and other subjects. This experimental education system has received various changes since its implementation in a response to academic results as well as feedback from teachers and students. The Ministry of Education handles these affairs. The current system was designed almost solely by Minister of Education Fritz Lange, a primary school teacher from the communist party. Health Culture Art Architecture Entertainment Sports Literature and Philosophy Media Cuisine Flag Category:Countries Category:German Nations Category:Workers' States Category:Members of the Comintern Category:Members of Rotfront Category:Free Socialist Republic of Germany